Wallonia, a land of democratic innovation
In October 2023, Smarter Together, the non-profit initiated by Dreamocracy, worked with 15 civil servants from the Walloon Public Service for two days. The hackathon was an opportunity to come up with 20 innovations regional authorities could take into consideration to better listen to citizens and work more efficiently.
Over the first day, participants identified challenges in citizen participation based on a shared vision for 2029. Using photo language and a SWOT analysis, 20 civil servants pinpointed the main issues. They then rephrased these challenges and categorised them into four priority areas. Through brainwriting, participants explored the dimensions of these challenges and developed key proposals to address the most urgent ones.
During the second day, and building on these ideas, we identified the top challenges for citizen participation and formulated 19 concrete actions for Wallonia to be implemented over the next 5 years.
To make it happen, Dreamocracy used visioning and scenario planning, designed and facilitated collaborative processes and workshops and helped develop bold democratic innovations.
Services provided
- Visioning and scenario planning
- Designing and facilitating collaborative workshops and processes
- Developing bold democratic innovations
19 innovative reform proposals for democracy in Wallonia
Together, experts and public servants:
- Fostered 19 innovative reforms agreed upon by civil servants. Some initiatives will be implemented by Wallonia’s public service, while others fall under the next government’s jurisdiction.
- Renewed commitments and strengthened the sense of community: The seminar enabled unprecedented cross-departmental dialogue within Wallonia’s public service, fostering renewed commitment and setting up future exchanges on lessons learned and best practices.
- Mapped risks and challenges facing new democratic processes in the coming years (e.g., unchecked AI, lack of coordination, insufficient legal framework).
